Moving to Valencia with your pet: paperwork, bans, planes and trains

You have found the flat, booked the flight and already spotted the terrace for your first caña. One family member left to prepare: your dog or cat. Good news, Valencia is a very animal-friendly city, with parks, dog beaches and bars that welcome four-legged friends. Less good news: between the entry paperwork, Spanish animal-welfare law and the airline rules, there are a few boxes to tick. Here is the complete, 2026 guide to arriving in Valencia with your pet without any nasty surprises. The single most important thing to know: the paperwork you need depends entirely on where you are travelling from.

The basics: microchip, rabies, health document

Three things drive everything else, whatever your starting point:

• An ISO-standard microchip (11784/11785), fitted before the rabies vaccination.
• A valid rabies vaccination. The first jab can be given from 12 weeks of age, after which you must wait 21 days before travelling.
• A health document: an EU Pet Passport if you come from the EU/Ireland, or an official health certificate if you come from outside the EU (UK, USA, etc.).

A small trap: an animal under 15 weeks cannot enter (the time to vaccinate and then wait 21 days). On non-commercial trips you may bring 5 animals maximum.

From Ireland or another EU country: the easy case

This is the simplest scenario. The EU Pet Passport, issued by your vet, is enough: it proves microchip identification and an up-to-date rabies vaccination. No extra paperwork on entry to Spain. Irish citizens and their pets travel exactly as any other EU resident does.

From the UK (post-Brexit): you now need an AHC

This is the big change since Brexit, and it catches a lot of Britons out. The old EU Pet Passport issued in Great Britain is no longer valid for travel. Instead, for each trip your pet needs an Animal Health Certificate (AHC), issued by an official vet (OV) in GB no more than 10 days before travel. Your pet still needs the ISO microchip and a valid rabies vaccination as above. The AHC is valid for entry to the EU, then for onward travel within the EU for four months and for re-entry to GB, but you need a fresh one each time you travel out from GB. Northern Ireland is different: pets from NI can still use the EU Pet Passport. Budget for the OV's fee and book the appointment early, as slots fill up.

From the USA: microchip, rabies and a USDA-endorsed certificate

From the United States you need the ISO microchip, a valid rabies vaccination, and an EU health certificate endorsed by the USDA (the certificate is completed by a USDA-accredited vet, then officially endorsed by your USDA APHIS Veterinary Services endorsement office). It is valid for 10 days for entry to the EU. If you are travelling from a country the EU classes as high-risk for rabies (the mainland US is not on that list, so most travellers are fine), you would also need a rabies antibody titre test: a blood test at least 30 days after vaccination, a result of 0.5 IU/ml or higher, then a 3-month wait before entry. Plan several months ahead if that applies to you.

Once in Valencia: your obligations

Welcome. On the Spanish and Valencian side, a few reflexes:

• Compulsory identification. In the Comunitat Valenciana the microchip has long been compulsory for dogs, and since 2023 also for cats and ferrets. Your animal must be registered with RIVIA, the Valencian animal-identification register.
• Registration at the town hall (the censo): your animal must be declared there.
• Law 7/2023 on animal welfare adds national rules: no leaving a dog alone for more than 24 hours, animals kept under control in public, and so on.

Two much-discussed obligations, a free training course for every dog owner and compulsory public-liability insurance for all dogs, are set out in the law but not yet actually enforceable in 2026, as the implementing decree is still pending. Worth watching: they could take effect at any moment.

Daily life: lead, poo and pee

This is where a good owner's reputation is made, and Valencia takes it seriously. The municipal ordinance is clear:

• A lead is compulsory in public spaces, with an identification tag on the collar.
• Poo must be picked up, always. You must even be able to show at least two bags per animal if an officer asks, then bin the waste.
• Pee must be rinsed. Yes, really: you must carry a small bottle of water to dilute urine on pavements, street furniture or facades. It is a very Valencian rule, increasingly enforced. Many people add a splash of vinegar to neutralise the smell.
• A muzzle is only required in specific cases (a dog that has already bitten, foreseeable dangerousness) or for breeds classed as PPP.

Good manners literally pay off: the town hall can inspect and fine. A roll of bags and a small water bottle in your pocket, and you are set for the walk.

Potentially dangerous dogs (PPP)

If your dog is one of the breeds classed as PPP (American Staffordshire, Rottweiler, Dogo Argentino, Pit Bull, Fila Brasileiro, Tosa, Akita Inu and a few others), the regime is stricter, and very much in force today: a municipal licence, compulsory public-liability insurance, a muzzle and short lead (under 2m) in public, and entry on the register. For the licence: be an adult, present a compatible criminal-record certificate and a certificate of aptitude. There is an ongoing debate about replacing the breed list with a behaviour assessment, but in 2026 the list remains the rule.

Which animals are you allowed to keep?

Law 7/2023 introduced a positive list (listado positivo) of permitted pets. Dogs, cats and ferrets remain allowed, of course. For the rest, the logic is reversed: what is not on the list is banned. Excluded or banned in particular: venomous reptiles and all reptiles over 2kg as adults (except tortoises), primates, wild mammals over 5kg as adults, and dangerous, protected or invasive species. Many exotic animals (snakes, iguanas, chameleons, geckos, some parrots) fall off the list. If you already keep one of these, transitional periods apply, but check carefully before crossing any border with it.

Travelling by plane

The two most useful airlines to and from Valencia:

• Iberia: in the cabin, a carrier of 45 x 35 x 25cm maximum and 8kg all-in (animal plus bag). In the hold for larger ones, except brachycephalic (flat-faced) breeds and dangerous breeds, which are refused. Iberia will not carry, in cabin or hold, several breeds including Pit Bull, Staffordshire, American Staffordshire, Rottweiler, Doberman, Dogo Argentino, Fila Brasileiro, Tosa and Akita.
• Vueling: cabin only (no hold), one animal per person and 5 maximum per flight. An approved soft carrier of 45 x 39 x 21cm and 10kg maximum including the animal.

In every case: microchip, passport or certificate, and rabies vaccination done at least 21 days before. And in summer, beware the heat: the hold is discouraged, even banned, for short-nosed breeds. Direct flights from London and Dublin make the trip manageable; from the US, a direct or single-connection routing is kinder on the animal.

Travelling by train (Renfe)

A pleasant surprise: Renfe has opened up to bigger dogs.

• Small animals up to 10kg (dogs, cats, ferrets): accepted on all trains, in a closed carrier, with a pet ticket.
• Large dogs up to 40kg: this is the Transporte Amigable service, launched on Madrid-Barcelona then extended, notably to the Valencia and Alicante axis. The dog travels on the neighbouring seat (which you reserve), with no carrier, on a short 1.5m non-extendable lead and a muzzle to move around the station.

The conditions: limited places (one large dog per person, two per train), a fare of around €35, and arrival 40 minutes before at the Centro de Servicios Renfe with the responsible declaration, the vaccination record and insurance. Excluded: dogs under one year and PPP breeds. For all your other journeys once here, we have prepared the full guide to getting around Valencia.

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The quick memo: ISO microchip and rabies vaccination (21 days before), plus the right document for your origin: EU Pet Passport (Ireland/EU), Animal Health Certificate (UK, post-Brexit), or a USDA-endorsed EU certificate (USA). In Spain: microchip for dogs, cats and ferrets, registration with RIVIA and the town hall. Daily life: lead, poo pick-up (two bags) and rinsing pee with water. Plane: 8kg cabin on Iberia, 10kg on Vueling. Train: up to 10kg everywhere, up to 40kg on certain AVE routes including Valencia.

Sources

• European Commission: bringing a pet into the EU from a non-EU country
• GOV.UK: taking your pet to an EU country (Animal Health Certificate)
• USDA APHIS: pet travel from the US to Spain
• BOE: Ley 7/2023 on animal protection and welfare
• RIVIA: Valencian animal-identification register
• Ajuntament de València: ordinance on coexistence and animal urine
• Iberia: travelling with pets
• Vueling: pets
• Renfe: travelling with a pet

Information verified in July 2026. Rules, taxes and procedures change quickly: always check the official sources before you travel. The Daily Valencia is an AI-assisted publication with human review; our editorial team checks and takes responsibility for every article. Spotted an error? Write to us and we will correct it.